With the season winding down in the month of Apr, third place is now on the radar for the Binghamton Senators and it begins tonight against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in a game that separates the two clubs by only three points. Rookie goaltender Chris Driedger will be the main focus as he’ll be in net entertaining his fourth time for Binghamton in a follow-up with his solid outing in Wednesday’s win in Syracuse.
(29-31-7-1, 66 Pts) 4th in East Division
VS
(31-29-6-1, 69 Pts) 3rd in East Division
7:05 PM
Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena
RADIO: 96.9 FM, 680 AM. AHL Live.
MATCH-UP HISTORY
Senators have won 5 out of 9 including an overtime loss in Allentown back late in Feb. This is game #10 and final, as the two most heavily penalized teams look to go out with a bang against one another.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Jason Akeson, LV – The 24-year-old is in his 4th year with the Philadelphia Flyers organization and is second on the team with 47 points in 49 games behind Nick Cousins‘ 55 pints in 60 outings. With Cousins currently up in Philly, Akeson fills in as they have been a great 1 – 2 punch for the Phantoms all season long with consistent numbers to back them up.
Driedger, BNG – Let’s hope he gets the remaining starts in the final two weeks of action as he needs some experience at the pro level other than at the ECHL. Driedger shows promise with his quick reflexes along with decent positioning and should benefit as he will be relied upon next season as the #1 goaltender for Binghamton.
THREE KEYS TO THE GAME
1. Two Teams Topping the List in PIM’s – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms are the leaders in the AHL with 1639 PIM’s and also lead with 30 10 minute misconducts, while Binghamton is third with their 1427 minutes while leading with 99 fisticuffs and 14 game misconducts. Might all be silly numbers to mention for some, but fun to look at with no playoffs in sight for either team.
2. Senators’ Offensive Slump – Binghamton’s offense has cooled down a bit resulting in only 6 goals in the past 4 games, but scored 3 in Wednesday’s win in Syracuse showing some promise of them possibly breaking out of their current slump. Either way, the Senators still have the offensive power to regain the 3rd slot in the division, but need the defense to play their part as well.
3. Both Club’s Playing .500 Hockey – With both teams experiencing a record of 5-5-0 in their last 10, and are coming off wins, the Senators are only 3 points back of the Phantoms, but have played one less game. No longer is the East the beast of the AHL as in past the 3rd and 4th place in the division would be good enough to earn a spot in the post season with the cross over rule in full effect in the conference.
B-SENS TWEET OF THE GAME
The #BSens have signed @awides10 to an amateur tryout... Alex is the younger brother of @Chris_Wideman & a former @MiamiOH_Hockey standout
— Binghamton Devils (@BingDevils) April 2, 2015
*Cover Pic Courtesy of SenShot’s Photographer Alicia Strauch
Next: Chris Wideman Helps Chris Driedger With GWG In OT Past Syracuse Crunch